Barry Pepper takes a turn behind the wheel of the No. 3 as The Intimidator. Credit: David Bell/ESPN

ESPN on track with '3'

Movie captures the family life struggles of late Dale Earnhardt

No director -- no matter how talented -- can fit the story of Dale Earnhardt into a 90-minute window.

MULTIMEDIA 2001 Daytona 500 highlights Dale Earnhardt photo gallery Images from ESPN's "3" Photos of the cast of "3"

But ESPN, in its fourth attempt at movie-making, has tried to do just that. For the most part, it succeeds, although major gaps remain.

The gaps -- most notably absences of a rivalry with Jeff Gordon and his founding of DEI -- stick out in 3: The Dale Earnhardt Story, but the story itself is hard to mess up.

Credit: David Bell/ESPN

We've all heard the story. Dale Earnhardt grows up in a cotton mill town. Son of a dirt-track driver. Father dies in 1973. Son is driven to succeed. And does. The legend grows until an untimely death.

ESPN pretty much sticks to the game plan when making the movie, and what emerges is an effort far better than its previous tries at cinema.

The movie is not Dale Earnhardt continuously spinning people out to win races. It isn't continued heartbreak at Daytona. It's about his family. Period.

The main reason the film succeeds is the casting to fit the story. Barry Pepper stunned moviegoers in 2001's *61, with his lifelike portrayal of Roger Maris.

And he does it again in 3.

Pepper does not particularly talk like Earnhardt and does not have the stocky build of Earnhardt, but the facial features -- with studio augmentation, of course -- is enough to bring the man back to life. When Pepper is strapped into the car, he is Earnhardt.

TV  3: The Dale Earnhardt Story, Saturday, 9 p.m., ESPN

Goggles and all.

Pepper, who also co-produced the film, plays Earnhardt for all but a few minutes in the movie. In scenes in the 1950s, child actor Dylan Smith steps in.

Veteran character actor J.K. Simmons does an adequate job as Ralph Earnhardt, and newcomer Chad McCumbee has the facial features and North Carolina accent of Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Credit: David Bell/ESPN

The movie is not without some unintentional comedy. There is a painfully funny scene when Dale Earnhardt Jr. is shipped off to military school due to poor grades.

"I almost got a B in math," Dale Jr. protests.

It was almost as funny as the scene later in the movie where Dale Jr. sits in his backyard, drinking beer and listening to a Three Doors Down cover band while toying with remote-control cars.

Equally amusing was an early scene at a dirt track, which featured a quick shot of a fan spitting a wad of tobacco in the infield. It was totally unnecessary, mainly because tobacco isn't shot from a cannon.

Credit: David Bell/ESPN

But ah, the racing -- which is actually surprisingly strong. Racing movies are not known for their accuracy, and 3 is guilty of some paint-swapping clichés. But the racing in the movie is fantastic.

We've come a long way since Days of Thunder, although in one part of the movie, Earnhardt races Neil Bonnett (Sean Bridgers) on foot back to the truck after a hunting trip.

It's only two weeks removed from the 2004 season, but ESPN had to capitalize on the holiday season of DVD and book sales. That is why this movie wasn't released in January or February. As it is, the movie seems a little rushed.

Fortunately, ESPN was able to use a lot of archive footage, including video of Earnhardt's 1998 Daytona 500 win and the memorable clashes with Darrell Waltrip in the late 1980s.

Credit: David Bell/ESPN

Some die-hard Earnhardt fans will notice some subtle mistakes. After wrecking Waltrip at Richmond in 1986, the movie shows Earnhardt telling reporters that he only meant to "rattle his cage." Of course, the real Earnhardt uttered that line at Bristol 13 years later after punting Terry Labonte.

Even so, the movie did a stellar job of revisiting time. David Sherrill has Humpy Wheeler's hair, suits and speech down pat, and Joe Chrest is well-cast as Jake Elder.

You'll be pleased to find out that the movie is -- even though Junior Johnson is portrayed sans a full head of white hair -- well researched. During a shot of the tachometer during a Daytona race, the RPMs are at 7,000 -- exactly where they should be during a restrictor-plate race.

It even touches the difficult subject of Earnhardt's relationship with oldest son Kerry (Frank Glidden), although the dialogue ("I worked at Pizza Hut when I was 13," says Kerry in the movie) was painful to the touch.

Credit: David Bell/ESPN

You would think that the end of the movie is painful. Yes, it ends at the 2001 Daytona 500, but it's the minute after which tugs at your heart.

It's probably the best minute of the 90 you are going to spend on Saturday night, and it completely ties the story together.

In short, the movie is in many ways the like a car built by Richard Childress Racing. It's not indestructible or exceptionally powerful, but like Earnhardt, it still finds a way to contend for the win.

The opinions listed here are solely those of the writer.